Suds saver



Filed April 13, 1955 Fig.

J. v. SANDERS 3 suns SAVER 1 3 Sheets-Sheet l Jerome V. Sanders a INVENTOR.

Dec. 27, 1955 J. v. SANDERS 3,

SUD-S SAVER Filed April 13, 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 4

Jerome M Sanders INVENTOR.

S R E D N A 8 V I'm SUDS SAVER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 13 1953 II II n H '1 Jerome l/. Sanders INVENTOR.

I I i SUDS SAVER Jerome V. Sanders, Janesville, Wis. Application April 13, 1953, Serial No. 348,262

2 Claims. (Cl. 137571) This invention relates to the new and useful improvements in clothes washing machines and the primary object of the present invention is to provide a suds saving attachment for clothes washing machines that will collect and supply soapy water to the machine during the soaping or washing operations.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide a cabinet attachment for clothes washing machines that is quickly and readily applied to or removed from the combined soapy water inlet and outlet pipe of a clothes washing machine in a convenient manner for the purpose of receiving soapy water leaving the machine and permitting this soapy water to be retained in a reservoir until it is redirected into the machine by the usual pump of the machine.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a suds saver for a clothes washing machine that is extremely neat and attractive in appearance, small and compact in structure, to be readily connected to a washing machine and located within a room area to appear as a cabinet portion of the machine.

A still further aim of the present invention is to provide a suds collecting and storing apparatus for clothes washing machines that is simple and practical in construction, strong and reliable in use, eflicient and durable in operation, inexpensive to manufacture and install, and otherwise Well adapted for the purposes for which the same is intended.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of the present invention and showing the same operatively connected to a conventional clothes washing machine;

Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the present invention and showing the same disposed alongside of a conventional clothes washing machine;

Figure 3 is an elevational view showing the present invention connected to a diiferent washing machine when the suds collecting and storing device is located on the opposite side of a partition wall from the clothes washing machine;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the present invention removed from a washing machine; and,

Figure 5 is an enlarged detail vertical sectional view of Figure 1 to show the manner in which the outlet means for the washing machine and the suds collecting and storing apparatus is disposed within a vent pipe.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein for the purpose of illustration, there is disclosed a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the numeral represents a well-known type of washing machine having hot and cold water lines 12 and 14 connected thereto for supplying water into the washing chamber of the 2,728,352 Patented Dec. 27, 1955 2 machine. The machine 10 is provided with a rinse water drain pipe 16 and a combined suds outlet and inlet pipe 18, the latter being operatively connected to a two-way pump in the hollow bottom of machine 10 so that suds may be expelled from the machine after a period of time and later returned for a second washing.

Heretofore, the machine 10 required installation close to a double tub so that drain (rinse) water from the machine could enter one compartment of the tank from pipe 16 and soapy water could enter the other compartment of the tub fromthe pipe 18. Such installation is not completely satisfactory due to the requirement of space, and adjacent relationship of the tub and washing machine. Furthermore, such a construction does not oifer an attractive appearance for kitchen installation and frequently defeats the use of the tub for other purposes, such as soaking, dyeing or the like.

It is therefore, the primary object of the present invention to provide a neat and attractive suds saving apparatus that is operatively connected to the washing machine 10 r@ we to occupyvery little'space while concealing the pipes which are connected to the washing machine, the machine and suds saver being provided with common trap and vent means to produce the required operative parts to a minimum.

To accomplish the desired results, there is provided a casing or cover 20 having a double walled chamber or reservoir 22 in its upper portion. The spaced walls 24 and 26 defining the reservoir 22 have a suitable insulation material 28 disposed therebetween so that the reservoir will be insulated. The top of the reservoir 22 which is also the top of casing 20, is provided with a door 30 which may be removed for the addition of a detergent or the like into reservoir 22.

A trap 32 is disposed under the floor surface 34 supporting machine 10 and casing 20. The trap 32 is coupled by pipe sections 36 to the lower end of a vent pipe 38 which is supported within the casing 20 along side of the reservoir 22. A breather tube 40 extends from the upper end of reservoir 22 into the upper end of vent pipe 38 and a pipe 42 coupled to the drain pipe 16 of machine 10 also enters upper end of vent pipe 38. An overflow pipe 44 extends outwardly from the upper end of reservoir 22 below the tube 40 and is provided with a downwardly ofiset outer end 46 that enters an aperture 48 in vent pipe 38 below the lower end of tube 40 as shown in Figure 5.

A vertical supply outlet pipe 50 is disposed axially within the reservoir 22 and its lower end is spaced above the bottom outlet 52 of the reservoir. The upper end of pipe 50 is connected to the pipe 18 of machine 10 by suitable pipe sections 54, one of which extends through the side wall of the reservoir 22 adjacent vent pipe 38.

The bottom drain outlet 52 of reservoir 22 is connected by conduit means 56 to a section 58' of pipe section 36 so that soapy water leaving the reservoir 22 may pass into the trap 32 along with water, rinse and soapy, entering the vent pipe 38 from pipes 16 and 44. Conduit 56 is provided with a valve 58 which is disposed with the valves 60 and 62 of hot and cold water lines 12 and 14 within the hollow bottom of casing 20 under the reservoir 22. The front wall of casing 20 is provided with an access door 66 which may be opened to provide access to the valves 58, 60 and 62.

The corners of casing 20 carry vertically adjustable pressure members or flooring engaging feet 66 which are readily adjustable to permit leveling of the casing 20 and reservoir 22.

As will be noted in Figure l, and as aforedescribed, the vent pipe 38 is located within the casing 20 and alongside of the reservoir 22 so that all pipes entering the casing 20 will enter the same from the rear wall and not be visible from the front of the machine or casing 20. However, when the invention is installed as illustrated in Figure 3 on the opposite side of a partition P from the machine 10, the casing 10 need not be enlarged to conceal the vent pipe 38 and the pipes which extend to and from the vent pipe. Also, the hot and cold water lines 12 and 14 will not be disposed within the open bottom of the casing. In this latest embodiment, the bottom outlet of the reservoir will be connected to the section 58' of pipe sections 36 to drain into trap 32, the breather tube from the reservoir will again extend into the upper end of the vent pipe and terminate above the overflow pipe 44 which also extends from the reservoir into the vent pipe.

inasmuch as the reservoir is insulated, the warm soapy water entering the reservoir 22 by way of pipe 50 will remain relatively warm until the pump of the machine 10 reverses itself to withdraw the soapy water from the reservoir 22 back into the machine 10. The door 30 is easily removed for convenient cleaning of the reservoir 22 and the door 64 may be removed so that valves 58, 60 and 62 will be accessible when desired.

It is preferred that the casing 20 be of porcelain construction to match the exterior surface appearance of the machine 10 when the device is mounted alongside of the machine 10 as illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawings.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In a washing machine having a rinse water drain pipe and a suds outlet pipe extending therefrom, a suds saver comprising a closed chamber having a bottom outlet, a suds inlet pipe entering the chamber and coupled to said suds outlet pipe, a vent pipe supported adjacent 4 said chamber and having an upper open end accommodating said drain pipe, a breather tube extending outwardly from the upper end of said chamber and entering the upper end of said vent pipe and an overflow pipe extending outwardly from the upper end of said chamber under said breather tube and entering the upper end of said vent pipe.

2. In a washing machine having a rinse Water drain pipe and a suds outlet pipe extending therefrom, a suds saver comprising a chamber having a bottom outlet, 21

suds inlet pipe entering the chamber and coupled to said suds outlet pipe, a vent pipe supported adjacent said chamber and having an upper open end accommodating said drain pipe, a breather tube extending outwardly from the upper end of said chamber and entering the upper end of said vent pipe and an overflow pipe extending outwardly from the upper end of said chamber under said 7 breather tube and entering the upper end of said vent pipe, a cover secured to said chamber and enclosing said vent pipe, said breather tube and said overflow pipe.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,067,918 Hanna Juiy 22, 1913 1,351,259 Maschek Aug. 31, 1920 1,358,355 Bewan Nov. 9, 1920 1,583,851 Mortensen May 11, 1926 1,714,694 Riley May 28, 1929 1,909,288 Link Mar. 16, 1933 2,324,756 Bombard July 20, 1943 2,434,199 Dyer "a Jan. 6, 1948 2,562,610 Geldhof 2... July 31, 1951 

